Distillation apparatus



June Q, 1925.

F. M. SALERNI ET AL DvI STILLATION APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Shea?I 1 Filed July 1G. 1924 WHW 'June 9, 1925 P. M. SALERN ET AL DISTILLATION APPARATUS' 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July `16, 1924 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 MMHIMM .HHN 2 P. M. SALRNI ET AL DISTILLATION APPARATUS med July 16. 1924 Patented June 9, 1925.

- Unirse A'rur PIERO MARIANO SALERNI, LONDON, ENGLAND, AND EDOARDO MICHELE SALERNI,

OF PARIS, FRANCE.

DSTILLATION' APPARATUS.

Application tiled July 16, 1924.

To all whom t may conce/m.'

lie it known Vthat We, Piano MARIANO Hamam and End-inno UMIcHnm- SALERNI,

both subjects ot' the King ot' italy, residing, respectively, at l (llianinglross, Trafalgar Square. in the county of London, England, and 19 line Auber, Paris, in the Republic of `France. have invented certain new and useful Dstillation Apparatus, of which the lollowin Y is a specifioation.

T his invention relates to the distillation or treatment ot earbonaeeous and other materials. especiallythough not exclusively, to so-called lou1 or median; temperature dis'- tllation processes `carried on within an erf:- lernally or internally heated retort. Une object of the present invention is to increase the' surface exposed to the influence of the heatingy medium, or the cooling medium Where such is used; to allow for expansion and contraction of the retort; to improve generally the construction and disposition ot the retort chambers so that space is eeonolnized and the valuable volatile constituents yielded up at dillerent temperatures may conveniently be collected separately and conducted to separate condensers; to increase the yield of the more valuable con stituents and to provide an improved method of rendering the joints of the retort, etc., fluid tight.

Accordingr to one feature of the present invention the retorting apparatus may be constituted by a number of troughs or cylin` ders ot suitable`and preferably uniform length which are located side by side, nd which are so constructed or arranged that the material undergoing treatment therein passes or is fed laterally from trough to trough or from cylinder to cylinder. ln the case otn cylinders located side by side and heated externally the several cylinders may be in communication with each other throughout their entire length or they may be placed in communication with one another b v boundary Walls of a suitable height or by providing slots or recesses in the' l'ioundary Walls which separate one cylinder trom its contiguous cylinder. ln the oase of troughs the material is ted over the. side of one trough into the contiguous trough. The several troughs may be closed in at their upper parts in any suitable manner;

Serial No. 726,360.

for example, a `common roof, lid or cover lor the several retorts ot the series may he provided or the root 'may be formed from a number' of segmental roof seotions. The troughs, instead of being placed side by side may be superimposed and the material ted. if desired with reversal of feed, from end to end of each superimposed retort or they may he placed end to end. The said troughs are preferably provided with stirring"r or agitating devices and the feed or lateral discharge of the material from one trough or cylinder to another may' be controlled either by regulating: the speed at which the stirring apparatus is rotated or by regulating the rate at which the material is ted iutothe first trough or cylinder et the. series. The stirring or agitating apparatus may be of the'kind which is so constructed that it serves primarily to stir or agitata the material Without propelling the same through the retort. The several troughs or cylinders constituting the series may. if desired. be provided with eorrugations as aforesaid so as also to increase the heating surface or to allow 'for expansion oltcontraction or both, and they may also, as aforesaid. be 'provided externally or internally' with ribs or fins.

By locatingY the troughs side by vside and feeding the material forward from 'trough to trough in the longitudinal direction of the series. expansion in the longitudinal di- A reetiou of the series ot' retorts is provided 'for while. by providing* each retort with transverse corrugations, expansion in the transverse direction is provided for. the beating surface vbeinel also increased and a more compact and efficient apparatus produced.

According* to one 'feature ofthe present invention, the surtace exposed to the action of the heating' medium is increased by unn dulating. corrugatine' or deforming the surtace ot the retort chamber. The coz-ruga` tions. detta-mations or the like may be of any-suitable cross section and in the ease ot eorrugations may be disposed longitudinally in planes parallel to the axis of the retort. Preferably, hon/ever, they are Vformed transversely and at right angles to the axis of zthe retort, so as not only to increasethe surface exposed to the muence of the heatino gases but also to allow for expansion and the longitudinal direction, The corrugations or the like may be formed throughout the entire length of the retort or they may he provided at suitable distances apart throughout its length. In cases Where a retort is provided with a mixing device or a device for 'feeding the material from end to end of the retort, the arms of the mixer or equivalent device extend into the` corrugations so as to scrape and clear away any carbonaccous material which tends to adhere to thc corrugated interior surface of theretort. The body of the retort may be constituted by metal, or Vby briclnvork or otherreiractory material, or of a combination ot metal and brickwork. In the case ot refractory material such as briclrwork the heating gases pass through passages located behind the corrugated brickwork or behind a corrugated lining therefor. ln the case of a retort which is heated externally and in order further to increase the transmission of heat from the furnace to the retort, the part thereot which is located above the iurnace may be provided externally or internally or both internally' and externally with projecting ribs or fins which become highly hea-ted by the furnace gases or the hot material. The tins may be of some-What similar construction to those used for cooling purposes in the cylinders of internal combustion engines.

The shaft ot the stirring or agitating dc- `rice ma also be so constructed as to allovv` or expansion and contraction. For example, the shaft may he constructed in two or more parts which are concentrically mounted so that one part can slide relatively to the other, ror else the ends of the shaft may he mounted Within bearings or supports which allow of'longitudinal expansion of the shaft relatively thereto.

According to another feature of the said invention and in order further to assist in' drying the material which is to undergo distillation and at the same time to provide an auxiliary storage compartment for the saidv material, a roof or canopy having inclined sides may be Vpositioned above a central gangwey extending between two banks'of retorts), and supported on Walls or partitions at the 'inner ends ot the retorts. Disposed abo-ve the said root' or canopy and at suitable distance therefrom may be an outer root having in-A clined sides. and supported on walls located at the outer` ends of the retorts. An opening or openings may be provided in the outer roof through which the material which is to be distilled can he fed soas to till up the space between the inner and outer canopies and between the outer partition Walls and the retorts, or' the dryers when such are provided. The inclined sides of the contraction of the retort in inner our opy can be so disposed relatively to the drying apparatus or the retorts that the material can be fed therein by `gravity. The material can be raised by means of an elevator and discharged on to one or more endless conveyor bands running along or above the apex of the outer roof or canopy and discharged therefrom to various points of tho'said storage compartment. It desired, the material before being fed into the hoppers of `the elevator can `be passed through a crusher. In cases Where the main supply of material which is to undergo treatment is located adjacent to the distillation plant a chamber can be formed beneath the material and doors or discharge hoppers provided in the roof of the said chamber so that any desired quantity from themain body of material can be allowed to fall by gravity onto an endless band conveyor and thereafter ted either to the aforesaid Crusher or directly to the elevator which carries it to the auxiliary storage compartment or to various points thereof by the aforesaid band conveyor.'

In order that the said invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into etlectthe same will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawing. in Whichtv Figure l is a diagrammatic view showing the lay-out part of a plant constructed according to one form of the present invention, an

Figure 2 a transverse section thereof.

In this lay-out eight banks of retorts areshown disposed onv each side of a central gangway, each bank being composed of two superimposed sets of retorts. each set comprising eight retorts located side by side.

Figures 3 and 4 are a longitudinal section and a plan view respectively of a smaller installation omprising two banks of retorts arranged on either side of a central gangway each bank being composed of two sets of superimposed retorts and each set comprising six retorts.

Figure 5 is a longitudinal section and Figure 6 is a transverse section of the ren torts which comprise each set.

' Figure 7 is a longitudinal sectional view of the casing showing three sets of superimposed retorts therein.

l, l are the superimposed banl'cs or retorts, which, with the object of reducing the overall space occupied by a plant embodying the aforesaid features in combination, are arranged on either side of a main gangway 2; gangways 3, 3 (Figure l) at right angles to the main 'gangway are also "rovided The driving apparatus may conveniently bei constituted by electromotors 4. 4 adapted through change speed gearing 5, 5 to drive shafts which (Figures l., and 2) through driving belts 7 and gearing 8 lor through gear wheels 9 (Figures 3 and ll) (provided if desired with clutch devices), drive the main shafts 10, 10 of the several retorts A, A the shaft being provided with bevel wheels 11, 11 which engage bevel wheels al, al on the end of the shafts a., a of each retort. Through driving belts or gearing the driving mechanism of the reliminary dryers B, B dust extractors C coke coolers D, D condenser-SE, E and F, F, etc., are also driven. The preliminar dryers B, B are disposed above each banc of retors A, A andv the dust extractors C,

FC are located between each superimposed .set of retorts A. A. The vapours yielded up duringdistillation are withdrawn from one end of each retort A, A into impact condensers E. E the said condensers E, E being located in the gangway 2. The oil, after 'leaving the condensers E, E may be vpassed through water condensers F. F of any convenient type, and thereafter the oils may loe conducted to a settling tank G disposed beneath the gangways 3, 3. .Associated with the said settling tank are a number of depending tubes y. g extending to diti'erent depths therein so that after the oils have settled in layers according to their speoificgravity they may be withdrawn separately by means of centrifugal pumps for further treatmnh..libe-solid material which has undergone distillation within the re torts A, A is discharged from the retorts and passes'through the colte coolers D, D. After being discharged from the coolers D, D the coke is received upon endless bands 12, 12 adapted to carry the colte away from the distillation plant. The." said conveyor bands 12, 12 are preferably arranged as shown parallel to the gangway 2, 2. l?) is the roof or canopy having'inclined sides which is positioned above the central gang- Way 2, the said canopy 13 being supported on Walls or partitions 14 at' the inner ends of the retorts.- Disposed above said roof' or canopy is the outer roof 15 supported on walls 16 located at the outer ends of the retorts. The said outer roof 15 is provided with openings 16. 16 through which the material to be distilled is fed so as to fill the yspace 15el between the inner and outer canorpies'and between-the partitions 1G and 14 arid the tops of the dryers B, B. The main supply of fuel which is to undergo distillation is located at the point 18 where it is disposed above a floor 19'provided With one or loro tra doors and discharge ho ers 20 Y so that by opening the said door or doors the material falls by gravity through the hopper 20, on to an endless band conveyor 21 disposed beneath the hopper 20 which raises and discharges the same into the Crusher 22. The' material-Mdischarged from the crusher 22 is fed on to a second conveyor ,23 by which it is raised t0 a point above the outer roof .15 where it is discharged on to an endless band conveyor 24 which runs'parallel to the central gangway 2 and which is .adapted to discharge the material through the openings 16, 1b into the space 15 between the inner andv outer canopies. T he said-endless band conveyor 24 is driven in any suitable manner, for example and as shown at Figure 2 by bevel gearing 25 and driving shafts from the motors 4. `l. ,T he retorts are heated, in the example shown, by' gas and air burners a", d (Figure 3)the gas being supplied from any suitable source,

,delivered into the auxiliary storage cha1nherl located between the inner and outer canopies liand 15. From the auxillary storage chamber 15 within which the ma` terial undergoes partial drying, it passes by gravity into the dryers B, B and from thence to the upper set oi' retorts A, A. After leaving thc retortsI A. A the solid material passes into the lower set of retorts and thereafter enters the coke coolers D, D. F rom thence the cooled coke is discharged on tothe conveyor' bands 12. l12 and conveyed, for example, to a briquetting ina-- chine. The gases yielded up during distillation enter the dust extractor or extrac- Y tors (l. located between each set of retorts and thereafter enter the impact condenser-s lil. ll and through mains are conveyed to the water condenscrs l?, F the condensed oils hcing discharged into the setlling tank (il. from which they are withdrawn a't diii'erent levels tor further treat# ment. As the retorts. dryers. etc., are disposed on each side ot the main gangway 2. 2 and as the driving mechanism for the plant is located within the lateral gangway -:5. 3 the valves. indicators. controls,l etc..

for the entire plant can also be positioned at the centre of the structure, thus enabling thentire plant to be supervised and Vcontrolled from a central station with the minimum number of operators.

On leaving the dryerv B, B the material 4passes into the`iirst retortA of the series,

lrhese retorts, as shown in detail at Figures and 6, comprising a cylindrical casing having a corrugated base to increase the surface exposed to the action of the heating gases, the gas and air burners or other devices emllU . as to distil oil the oils which 'volatilize at' kshaft are spherical end 'cated within correspondinglyshaped spheriposed' retorts lteri'als apart, the distance apart of each of these arms in the example `shown correspondingto the distance between the suc eessive corrugations in` tlie bottonivof the retort. Owing to this arrangement, and when the shaft is rotated the Scrapers extend into the corrugated portions of the retort and scrape and remove an \7 material which may tend to adhere thereto. At the ends of the members a2, a2 local bearings a3, as, a gland or other 4suitable packing means being also provided. Owing to this arrangement a limited amount. ot' movement of the shaft relatively to its supportin bearing a, a3 is permitted. Each retort 1s provided at its ends with a chamberV a* into which extensions of the detachable roof a project. Batile plates a, a5 are provided so that the chamber acts to seal off the. retorts fromthe atmosphere.

successive retorts as shown at Figure 6 are disposed side by side and are separated from one another by partition plates as, as. Ow-

i ing to this arrangement and when the material is fed. into the first retort of the series it undergoes treatment therein and as the retort lills the excessmaterial passes laterally over the partition plate a into the next retort of the series. further treatment, at a higher temperature if desired, and passes into the next retort where it is subjected to'further treatment, if desired at a still higher temperature.

fter passing through the.upper set of retorts, the material falls through the opening aI into the yfirst retort of the similar set of retorts situated immediately beneath, where the material undergoes further heat treatment, the successive i'etorts of the lower series being subjected to higher temperatures than' those immediately above so higher tem eratures than those in the refltorts imme iatelyabove.

In the form of the invention illustrated in Figurer?, three sets or rows of superimor trough are-shown. retorts are located within anouter casing A3 provided with an inlet 610 leading from the preliminary dryer B to the first retort A of the series. The material on entering the retort A is stirred and agitated andfe laterally over the sidewall n. of thevfirst trough into the nextv'trough ot' the series;

thereafter the materialpasses from trough to trough as indicated by the arrows until it reaches the exit opening r/. whereupon it falls into the first trougliof the series lo` cated immediately beneath. TheI material 5 is then fed with reversal of feed as indiburneis ex, 1.x and the There it undergoesl These th'epaitition pla cated by the arrows through the other series of troughs until it reaches the end trough, whereupon it `falls through an open-ing 1T into the first trough of the third seti oi troughs. The material is again ted laterally with reversal of feed yiironi trough to trough of the third series until it reaches the opening ai leading to the colte coolers (I, (l. Each retort is heated by gas'aiid'air several retorts are .separated from one another by division plates A so that the volatile products in 'each set of troughsl can be drawn ofi1 separatelyy through openings A". A and A? leadingfi'om thediist extiaetors (`1 and (.72 to the impact condensers.

An arrangement of this kind has the advantage that the material' is thoroughly ldried and any water present therein is driven ofi' in the form of steam in the first one .or two troughs of the series, while in the remaining troughs of the seriestlie hydrocarbon oils are distilled and may be withdrawn at approximately the temperalures at which the)v are Ayieldedup by the carbonaeeous material. Cracking ofy the hydrocarbons into permanent gases and 'heavy oils is thereby avoided and the yield of lighter and more valuable -oils .is increased.' The volatilel eonstitutents yielded up within each separate trough or cylinder of the. series may be drawn ofi' and com densed separately. and'by permitting several sets of retorts to be superimposed or located side by side. as shown at Figures 1 1, space is eeononiized and the mechanism for actuating the stirring devices can be simplified. l.. J

Instead. howevei-,lol' causing the material to'lie discharged laterally from one trough to the next 'of the series, the material ii'iay undergo independent or separate treatment in'ea'ch trough and be discharged. at theend able manner. ln suoli easeseach trough is V preferably`,provided with a device of the character described in English Patent No.

182,601' which serves to agitato the material .without feeding'tlie sameor only feeding the vsame, to anincidental extent and at a slow rate ot' speed. A large .volume ot material can thus be treated separately in the several retorts oi the series.

The iiiathrial which is to undergo treat ment may, it desired` to be ted into a gastigiit c'lia'iiilier,formed by,transversely dis# posed partition plates or n dividing wallsy whichr extend to the roof ofptli'e retort and which divi/decil' a section ofthe trough from the.'niainpoi'tion thereof. `rlhe shaft carrying thev aforesaid A:rotatable arms or ma)v extend thi-'o'ugli the said chamber-and es may be iormed at their lower endswith cut-away portions through which the u'ialterial which enters the hamuti manon ber is fed or pushed in the longitudinal diiection ot the retort by the aforesaid rotating plates so that it enters the main portion of the trough located on either side of the said dividing wall.

Owing tp this arrangement the chamber is hermetically sealed and any escape ot' the evolved vapours or gases prevented. A similar arrangement of partition plates may be employed at any other desired parts of the apparatus.

Apparatus constructed as aforesaid may also be employed on a small scale lor laboratory use. iln suchcases and in order to secure the maximum yield ot' oil and at the same time to render it 'feasible to separate the vapours and gases `given oll during;l the early stages of thetlistill:\t.i m process 'from the oils given otl' at later stages. the series et' troughs may be divided oli' from one another by partition walls into a 4mnnber ofl independent sections. To this end-partition plates may be provided between two,r or more troughs which extend to the enclosing'rooll. and which are provided at one end with an opening through which the solid material can pas"-y t'rom one trough to the nent of the series into a sealing chamber provided with a baille plate having an openinV at its lowler end only thus preventing the escape ot' the gases and vapours. The dividing Walls between the other troughs of the series may also be provided with openings at their `upper parts, for the lateral escape of the material undergoing treatment, said openings being staggered or displaced relatively to one another so as to cause the material to pass'trom one trough to another of the series at different points throughout the length thereof. By dividing,r olf the retort into several sectionsas aforesaid not only can the steam and other vapours be drawnv oli' separately but the volatile hydrocarbons yielded up dierent temperatures during the distillation process can be drawn oil" and condensedfeither separately or collectively. The size of the condenser is thereby materially reduced as the large volume ot' steam, etc., given od' during the early stages oithe process does not require to be passed with `the oil vapours into the ctnidensers.

lt will be obvious that the aforesaid 'apparatus is applicable not only for elllecting the distillation 'oli carbonaccous materials but also for drying or roolinpr rmrposes.. In eases where the entire apparatus or any sertion thereof is used for drying!y purposes, for example when peat is being treated, combustion or other gases may be passed through 't he apparatus or through any special section thereotf', or the apparatus may be heated (or cooled) externally or it may be heated (or cooled) both externally and internally. In' fases where peat or the like is being treated the first tier or tiers ot troughs of the seriesmay be used for evaporating the moisture contained in the peat or the like and the lower tiers for subjecting the dried peat or the like to the requisite distillation process. 'the improvements above referred to are also applicable to retorts'of the type in which the material is stirred by stirrers or is t'cd by means ot a screw or otherwise from end to end of the retort Without being a1- lowedp to escape laterally from one trough to the other. ln such cases,lwhere the feed and discharge ot' material takes place in the longitudinal direction of the retort, a number ot superimposed tiers of retorts can also be provided, the material being fed as before described from the upper troughV to the trough immediately beneath it through pipes or conduits into sealing chambers formed by .plates which extend trom the roof ot' the retorty to the bottomtlliereof and in which a cutaway portion is provided for allowing the material to pass without escape of gas or the ,like imo fthe interior of the trough.,

Fluid tight. joints may be provided where necessary throughout the .apparatus by means of stalling boxes in which the medium which prevents ingress or egress of the fluid is composed of a material having a low meltingr vpoint such as lead-or by a plastic material such as clay, or by means of a heavy oil or a pulverulent or granular material such as sand, coal dust or coke breeze. For example, a gas-tight joint may be formed between the roof or cover of the retorts and the body portion,by providing a channel along the'top portion which is l'illed with one or other o t' the aforesaid mediums and into which a turned down'llangei on the.` roof or top ot' the retort is adapted to be inserted. ln the case of a medium such lead the'material is poured in while molten` but when the retorts or other portions of the apparatus are in use the medium is adapted to melt at the temperature attained during normal. working, thus forming a liquid seal. ln the case of smith-powdered `eoal, coke breezeor the like it has been found in practice that althougrh these, materials mayv low a small portion ol' the matter to escape when first used it-rapidlv becomes wate`r- .tin'ht` Use may also be made 'in connection with the retorts of a mediumy having a low melting point. such 'as lead,l or a medium which will itself volalilize below thettemperature .at which the oils which are beine; distilled' l'rom the material antler-reinel treatf ment within the retorts'are liable to be cracked. i

, What we claim and desire to ser-ure by LetA ters Patent of thc lUnited States is:-r y

L"\n apparatus forgdbe'distillation of can bomreeous material cmnprisiiigr a easing havinrginlet and outlet'opeiniaiesga set of super-` imposed troughs positioned` in said easing, each .set having a series et2 horizontal rows of llt) troughs open at the top and arranged to conyielded up in each of the horizontal series tact side by side in the same horizontal plane, of troughs, means for extracting dust in each said troughs being corru ated to allow eX- of said c lischarge means, end a, separate heeb pension and eontractionft ereof in u longitu- 111g deVlCe fOr G8011 Gf Said loughs.

dinal direction, a rotatable agitator in each of the troughs, discharge means for draw- PIER() MARIAN() SALERNI. ing off separately the volatile constituent EDOARDO 'MXCHELE SALERNI. 

